Shannon Hudson (hudsonsinaf, #5349) has received a certificate of achievement in Garden Gate for earning an Intermediate Level Herbs Merit Badge!

“Herbal gardening has been an adventure for me ... one that I have found I greatly enjoy! For this badge, I started growing two types of culinary herbs - basil and mint.

1. Basil - Oh how I love basil! It seems to be an incredibly easy herb to grow - one that I now have both in my herb garden outside, as well as inside! I have now made pesto with it, that I have used fresh as well as frozen in ice cube trays. I have also harvested leaves to use fresh in Caprese Salad, as well as to flavor various dishes, especially Italian meals! I have recently tried growing some Thai Basil as well, which is quite different that the sweet and genovese basil I first started growing!

2. Mint - One of my favorite times to drink mint tea, or have one of my kids drink mint tea, is when one of them is fighting a fever. We try to stay away from over the counter medications, but there are times a fever just gets a little too high for comfort. At those times, I love to give a warm cup of mint tea. I personally also use it for morning sickness, as well as for flavoring in my mineral tea, which also has alfalfa and oat straw, to keep my calcium and magnesium up while pregnant, thus keeping away leg cramps and muscle spasms. Right now I have both regular mint as well as chocolate mint growing. The chocolate mint is quite lovely with a TINY piece of stevia leaf as an evening "snack".

Growing these herbs are going great - EXCEPT my mint is trying to take over! Though I started it in a pot, the pot is in the ground... and the runners are growing all over the place, trying to take over the rest of my herb garden as well as my veggie garden. I think I am going to try making mint jelly in the very near future!”

MaryJane, Farmgirl #1 Plowin' Thru~ giving aprons a good wrap for 45 years and counting ~

Cheryl Villebrun (#353) has received a certificate of achievement in Stitching & Crafting for earning a Beginner Level Crochet Merit Badge!

“I made a baby blanket for a nurse who was caring for me in the rehab wing of a nursing home I had to stay at while mending from an ankle fracture. I crocheted in front of many people who would stop in to see how it was coming along and encourage/praise me for how pretty they thought it was.

The baby blanket turned out very well. I made it using a blanket stitch pattern and a "J" hook. It took me about a week from start to finish as I made a couple mistakes and had to frog it and start over. The only thing I think I would change is that I wish I'd put some sort of decorative border on it.”

MaryJane, Farmgirl #1 Plowin' Thru~ giving aprons a good wrap for 45 years and counting ~

Cheryl Villebrun (#353) has received a certificate of achievement in Stitching & Crafting for earning an Intermediate Level Crochet Merit Badge!

“I made this stroller blanket, sunbonnet and sandals for a neighbor couple who had a baby girl this past Feb. I'd been recouping in a nursing home when she was born so now that I'm home I got to work and finished it all in a couple days. Hubby was my companion for this project as he loves to see what I'm making and always encourages me. I've been rather home bound from a severe ankle fracture and so didn't have the ability to have crochet parties but I have gotten a lot done. Hope this will qualify.

Wonderful! I tried a new stitch that was a variation on the shell stitch using sc, hdc, dc. I used an "H" hook and 4 ply acrylic yarn so it is all machine washable/dryable.”

MaryJane, Farmgirl #1 Plowin' Thru~ giving aprons a good wrap for 45 years and counting ~

Joy Rebello (#2267) has received a certificate of achievement in Farm Kitchen for earning a Beginner Level Get it Together Merit Badge!

“I love to be in the kitchen so this is a problem area for me in terms of clutter.

I went through all of my cupboards and pantry, assessing to see what I really love and want.

I am also going through the stages in Marie Kondo's book, too. I now have a more streamlined kitchen. Feelings of guilt about unused items which were just sitting there are no longer present. A lot went to Goodwill, but friends and family took a lot of it.”

MaryJane, Farmgirl #1 Plowin' Thru~ giving aprons a good wrap for 45 years and counting ~

Sherrilyn Askew (Sherri, #1350) has received a certificate of achievement in Outpost for earning an Expert Level Knotty Farmgirls Merit Badge!

“I learned three more knotting techniques (figure eight - use in climbing, Turk's cap - ornamental, but would make a pretty zipper pull, and monkey's fist - used to make a weight at the end of a line)

I made a knotted hammock chair(it took over 30 hours and a great deal of mumbling).

I taught several young ladies how to use rope, especially tying knots.

The monkey's fist has a steel ball bearing in it and is my keychain fob. Make's it very easy to find my keys in my purse.

The hammock chair had several false starts as I kept getting my ropes on the wrong direction, then tying my square knots wrong. A backaches and, much tying and untying later, I had a hammock chair. Then I needed to get it hung. After another couple hours of sitting, adjusting, sitting, and adjusting again, the chair is hung outside where the breeze can be enjoyed.”

MaryJane, Farmgirl #1 Plowin' Thru~ giving aprons a good wrap for 45 years and counting ~

Sherrilyn Askew (Sherri, #1350) has received a certificate of achievement in Make it Easy for earning an Intermediate Level Carp-hen-try Merit Badge!

“I spent at least 20 hours building a picnic table for our back deck. I used all recycled lumber and designed the table myself. All the nails I pulled went into a bucket I keep handy for metal scrap.

It looks pretty nice, but it may be a little tall. Getting all the angled cuts correct for the legs and bracing was a pain and had to be done several times before I had them correct enough that they were usable. I plan to help the girls (my daughter and my partner's daughter) build their own benches to go with the table. I am looking forward to meals outside on it. No more too small plastic round table!”

MaryJane, Farmgirl #1 Plowin' Thru~ giving aprons a good wrap for 45 years and counting ~

Sherrilyn Askew (Sherri, #1350) has received a certificate of achievement in Garden Gate for earning an Intermediate Level 3 R's Rule Merit Badge!

“I made a woman-child scarecrow and posted pictures for my Chapter to see. Attempted to post them in the chat room, but something seems to have been lost in the translation.

Making a scarecrow is harder than it sounds. Her head is bigger than her body, her bust is non-existent, but her lower half looks normal. My daughter and I both had a good time choosing clothes and putting her together though.”

MaryJane, Farmgirl #1 Plowin' Thru~ giving aprons a good wrap for 45 years and counting ~

Ginger Harman (#6451) has received a certificate of achievement in Make it Easy for earning a Beginner Level Relaxation Merit Badge!

“I researched about mindfulness and meditation. I was able to participate in a breathing meditation and read work by Jon Kabat-Zinn, founder of MBSR (mindfulness-based stress reduction.)

In the past, I took a 8-week intensive training in mindfulness meditation course featured in Time magazine by Jon Kabat-Zinn. I reread all my notes and listened to his cd with breathing techniques. I was aware that I tight in my shoulders but was able to relax once I noticed this. I love the rise and fall of the breath and the temperature that one has when breathing through the nose. It is almost as if you can follow your breath as it enters.”

MaryJane, Farmgirl #1 Plowin' Thru~ giving aprons a good wrap for 45 years and counting ~

Shannon Hudson (hudsonsinaf, #5349) has received a certificate of achievement in Each Other for earning a Beginner Level Community Service Merit Badge!

“There are numerous community service projects I could get involved in, in our area. There is Charlestowne Landing, a historical attraction, that has animals that are local to this area. They use volunteers on a regular basis to help in these areas, including children! There are also horse rescues that my children really want to start volunteering at on a monthly basis. My third option was volunteering with HSAMF - Home School Association for Military Families. As a military wife for now over 18 years, and an avid homeschooler, I knew this was my first option.

HSAMF is a fantastic non-profit organization that works to support military homeschooling families, as well as connect both civilian and military homeschooling families. I spent the next two weeks volunteering by contacting different bases, as well as homeschool associations, to get their name out.

The first two weeks of working towards this goal was fantastic! It built my skills in making "cold calls" and in building relationships via phone calls and e-mails, which is obviously harder than doing so in person.”

MaryJane, Farmgirl #1 Plowin' Thru~ giving aprons a good wrap for 45 years and counting ~

Shannon Hudson (hudsonsinaf, #5349) has received a certificate of achievement in Each Other for earning an Intermediate Level Community Service Merit Badge!

“I continued to work with HSAMF to try to help establish the organization throughout the nation. Not only did I continue making phone calls and sending emails, but I also started working with the director in organizing an idea of starting a pen pal program. With such ideas came a lot of decisions to make and legalities to visit. It required working with instances in order for protection of the organization with involving so many people. There was also the question of finances.

One of the greatest benefits and lessons this two weeks taught me was to delegate. I quickly learned that while I wanted to take charge of organizing a pen pal program, there was no way I could do every facet to even determine how to start the program, let alone run it!”

MaryJane, Farmgirl #1 Plowin' Thru~ giving aprons a good wrap for 45 years and counting ~

Shannon Hudson (hudsonsinaf, #5349) has received a certificate of achievement in Each Other for earning an Expert Level Community Service Merit Badge!

“My focus for this badge was starting the pen pal program with HSAMF. Old fashioned letter writing has become a thing of the past... not just with adults, but even our children. I have issues with this and wanted to encourage home schooled children to reach out to other children through the written word, using complete sentences, opposed to texted acronyms and emails.

Our pen pal program, just over six months old, now consists of over 240 families, which translates to over 400 children! It is open to all home schooled children, both civilian and military. I have delegated the financial portion to other people, as well as following up once matches are made. I keep track of all the children in the program, and once I get all the paperwork enrolling the children, I make the matches and send the information to the families. On average, I work 20 hours a week on the Penpal Program.

I have also identified five additional programs that our children and my husband and I can get involved in. One of these is our local SPCA. While we would really enjoy having more animals, now is not the time. There is also a local goat farm that we have discussed with the owner volunteering at, but with being pregnant through the heat of the summer, we are thinking we might start this after the baby gets in a semi-routine. The third volunteer activity is with our church nursery. Due to having six children, and the seventh on the way, we have decided not to be put on the regular schedule. With that said, I volunteer whenever there is a shortage during our church services. The fourth opportunity to serve is via operation Christmas Child. While this is generally thought of as a Christmas program, our family has turned it into a year round program. Each month we make something to put in our boxes. The final community service is with one of our local nursing homes. We "adopted" a grandmother and grandfather at Christmas time. We spend time with "our grandparents" in an effort to build those relationships between generations.

Overall we are really happy with the growth of the program and the response from both the chidden and their parents. If anyone is interested in having their home schooled children joining in our program, you can check it out at www.hsamf.org”

MaryJane, Farmgirl #1 Plowin' Thru~ giving aprons a good wrap for 45 years and counting ~

Shannon Hudson (hudsonsinaf, #5349) has received a certificate of achievement in Garden Gate for earning a Beginner Level Community Service Merit Badge!

“Gardening here in South Carolina is basically year round! Our plantings started on the 29th of January. On that day I started planting carrots, gourmet blend lettuce, radishes, Four Seasons lettuce, swiss chard, Perpetual Spinach, and spring onions. YUM! In order to keep the slugs at bay, we sprinkled the ground with crushed egg shells. It worked pretty well, though we still had some. I also read the book "Montrose: Life in a Garden" by Nancy Goodwin.

My garden this year, which includes multiple veggies, has done really really well! It is my first year starting most of the plants from organic heirloom seeds. The book was honestly not one of my favorites. While I found the book interesting on one hand, on the other I am not a big flower gardener. There was quite a bit of the book I found over my head!”

MaryJane, Farmgirl #1 Plowin' Thru~ giving aprons a good wrap for 45 years and counting ~

Shannon Hudson (hudsonsinaf, #5349) has received a certificate of achievement in Garden Gate for earning a Beginner Level What's Your Beef? Merit Badge!

“Grass-fed beef is far better for your health, and the animal's well being, than corporately raised beef. Antibiotics are not natural or good for humans or animals, alike. Injecting hormones is a dangerous unnatural game to play. Health-wise, grass fed beef has more minerals, vitamins, and nutrients.

Overall, I think grass-fed beef is more aligned with God's design for the animals and ourselves. Cows were created to eat grass... not soy, corn, and other grains, topped with being injected by antibiotics and hormones! For both the benefits of the cows, as well as for my family, I would by far prefer the purchase of grass-fed beef over corporately raised beef.”

MaryJane, Farmgirl #1 Plowin' Thru~ giving aprons a good wrap for 45 years and counting ~

Shannon Hudson (hudsonsinaf, #5349) has received a certificate of achievement in Garden Gate for earning an Expert Level Herbs Merit Badge!

“Along with my basil and mint, I have cilantro, chives, parsley, thyme, lavender, rosemary, sage, and oregano growing in the herb portion of my garden. They are so lovely, both fresh and dried. My recipe I shared is for Herbal Vinegar. In a half pint jar, tightly pack a mixture of equal amounts of garlic, onions, oregano, thyme, and basil. Cover the mixture with apple cider vinegar (preferably with the mother). Cover with a piece of waxed paper and then a metal lid. Let stand for 3-4 weeks, and then strain. We enjoy using this vinegar, added to olive oil, as a salad dressing.

My recipe and dried herbs were welcomed with huge smiles :) There is something rewarding about being able to gift something from your own garden, kitchen, and heart!”

MaryJane, Farmgirl #1 Plowin' Thru~ giving aprons a good wrap for 45 years and counting ~

Wendy Beach (WSBeach, #6344) has received a certificate of achievement in Garden Gate for earning a Beginner Level Bee Good to Your Mother Earth Merit Badge!

“I have a small shaded backyard at my apartment so I made two raised beds in front of my apartment along with some other planters for my garden. I planted beets, chard, blueberries, strawberries onions, kitchen herbs and chamomile. I helped my granddaughter plant her first garden earlier this spring and start a compose pile. She harvested carrots, Radishes and oregano. I also readMontrose: Life in a garden.

I use Rosemary,Parsley,Thyme,and Oregano for cooking and I dehydrated catnip and chamomile for teas. I have used chard, onions in soups and stews. Now I have planted tomatoes,mints and peppers and some flowers (wild flowers in back). It makes me feel proud!”

MaryJane, Farmgirl #1 Plowin' Thru~ giving aprons a good wrap for 45 years and counting ~

Sara Knight (YellowRose, #6034) has received a certificate of achievement in Garden Gate for earning a Beginner Level Herbs Merit Badge!

“I identified five herbs and their uses.

Cinnamon Basil – used in teas and sugarsChives – used both in cooking, vinegars, and as a garnishThyme – used in cooking, vinegars, lacto fermenting, and medicinal teasPeppermint – used in teas, sugars, and candied mint leavesDill – used in pickling, lacto fermenting, cooking

I used fresh dill in salmon loaf.

Though I have grown herbs for years it was good for me to think on the individual herbs and how I use them.

Sara Knight (YellowRose, #6034) has received a certificate of achievement in Garden Gate for earning an Intermediate Level Herbs Merit Badge!

“I grow herbs mostly in containers but do have three in the ground. I make medicinal teas for the onset of colds. Two of the main herbs I use are Greek oregano and thyme.

After I dry and mix the herbs together I either store the loose tea in glass jars or put into tea bags that I seal with a hot iron. The tea bags are handy to use and make nice gifts. The teas may be effective at first signs of a cold and also help to ease the symptoms.”

MaryJane, Farmgirl #1 Plowin' Thru~ giving aprons a good wrap for 45 years and counting ~

Sara Knight (YellowRose, #6034) has received a certificate of achievement in Garden Gate for earning an Expert Level Herbs Merit Badge!

“This year I added three new herbs to my herb garden. Lemon grass I have used in teas and sauces. Mojito mint (Cuban mint) I use in teas and making flavored sugars. Chocolate mint I use in flavored sugars and coco in the winter.

I made 9 herb tea bags with herbs I grew & dried. The bags are used in cooking dried beans, lentils, and soups. The dried herbs I used are rosemary, sage, thyme, and chives. I will send the herb tea bags and recipe to members of Wildflower Farmgirls Chapter and MaryJane.

The herb tea bags turned out good and will be easy to mail. I keep herb tea bags on hand to use when I either don’t have the fresh herbs, or I am cooking something that I want the flavor but not the herbs in the finished dish.”

MaryJane, Farmgirl #1 Plowin' Thru~ giving aprons a good wrap for 45 years and counting ~